The same morning.

Five people dressed in Hernan Academy uniforms arrived at the port city, bixoro.

“Ugh! My whole body aches…”

Mika Welch, a noble-looking young man with luscious blond hair, stretched and groaned. Having traveled overnight on the train, his entire body was sore.

“Why are the train schedules so bad here? We just wasted a whole day.”

“Hey, dread. Why don’t you try building an airship port here?”

“Are you nuts? Building one here wouldn’t just run a deficit—it’d be a disaster!”

Behind him followed some rather cheerful young men, who all seemed quite close to each other.

They all looked at their leader, who was absentmindedly surveying the area.

“Hey, Wylde. So what on earth happened to your brother?”

“Yeah~ Did he get kidnapped or something?”

“That’s all fine, but let’s eat something first. I’m starving.”

To his friends’ worried words, Wylde spoke impassively.

“Luca isn’t the type to wander around. So, in fact, this trip is pretty much Luca’s first time traveling alone.”

“Oh~ really? So?”

His friends didn’t immediately catch his intent, prompting Wylde to speak flatly again.

“He said he got seriously hurt. That’s why we need to watch out, in case he gets involved in something dangerous.”

“……?”

“So that’s why we came all this way?”

Wylde looked at his friends’ incredulity and asked indifferently in return.

“Yeah. But why did you all come along?”

“Dude. We spent all day on the train together, and you’re just now asking that?”

“I was out of it.”

Wylde had been thinking about Luca the entire train ride, while the others played cards or slept.

At his response, his friends protested loudly.

“Hey! We came along because we were worried about you, and now you say that?”

“Yeah! I was excited to go have fun during break, but then you suddenly said we had to go to Bixoro so seriously I thought something must’ve happened!”

“I just came to meet some southern beauties.”

Well, maybe not that last one.

Regardless, as they protested, Wylde replied impassively.

“Weren’t you all just bored anyway?”

“That’s true.”

“Okay, but let’s at least eat something first. I’m starving. Isn’t there anywhere open at this hour?”

“I’m hungry too.”

“We need to buy new clothes! It’d be a bit much to try to hit on girls dressed like this!”

As usual, the boys of that age only said what they wanted. Mika, who always had a friendly smile, tried to mediate.

“Okay, okay, calm down. We all just came to hang out with Wylde anyway. And yes, we’re hungry, so let’s eat first. These uniforms are too conspicuous, so we’ll buy clothes after.”

“I know a famous place here. Their seafood barbecue is well known.”

“Let’s go there then.”

Now that their destination was settled, Mika approached Wylde, who was still lost in thought.

“I get how you feel, but it’s hard to ask around for information at this hour anyway. Let’s eat first, then move.”

“… Alright.”

Following Mika, Wylde took in the Bixoro scenery. Only one thought occupied his mind.

‘Luca. Please be safe.’

* * *

Contrary to Wylde’s wish, Luca was facing off against a group of staged-accident scammers.

Unlike Ottbo, who was helplessly flustered by the sudden situation, Luca couldn’t help but laugh.

“To think just brushing into someone would blow out their shoulder. It seems your training paid off, Ottbo.”

“Huh… huh?!”

Ottbo, flustered by Luca’s joke, looked back and forth between his own body and the man he had run into, eyes wide in shock.

“You… got that strong…?”

“I wouldn’t go that far.”

Seeing him fail to get the joke, Luca smiled faintly.

“Really? Ugh…”

Ottbo looked a little disappointed, and just then, the man whose shoulder had been dislocated, along with some rough-looking people who had been watching, approached the two performing this little act.

“Hey! What are you gonna do about this?”

“Yeah! This guy’s my friend—are you just gonna walk away after doing that to him?”

“You hit a person, you should apologize! And pay compensation too!”

Ottbo froze as the group encircled and started threatening them. But Luca remained cool.

“If you’re the sort to get hurt running into a feeble mage like this, maybe you’re better off not leaving your house at all.”

“Huh? What did you just say?”

“I’d understand if it was me you ran into, but to get injured by bumping into him? That’s not even funny.”

Saying this, Luca pulled Ottbo behind himself.

“Lu-Luca…”

Ottbo stuttered anxiously while Luca slowly gripped the sword at his waist. The staged-accident thugs laughed at the sight.

“Puhaha! What, is this broad going to protect her boyfriend?”

“But for a girl, doesn’t she have pretty short hair?”

“Who cares. Short cut? Must be her taste.”

“Little missy, why don’t you go drink some more milk first?”

“Is her chest that small because she didn’t get enough milk?”

“Kya-ha-ha!”

Snap.

At their jeering, a vein bulged on Luca’s forehead. But soon he sighed quietly and shook his head.

“Haaa. There’s no point getting angry at beastly howling.”

“Kikik! Did this b*tch just call us beasts?”

“Want to see what a real beast looks like? Ha! Then you’ll never be satisfied with that brat next to you!”

As their rudeness showed no sign of stopping, Luca slowly approached the man standing at the very front.

Looking up at him, he grabbed his sword’s scabbard at his waist and thrust it forward.

“?”

The man looked down at Luca with a confused expression. Luca then lightly kicked the tip of the scabbard.

Taak!

“Guh!”

The kicked scabbard caused the hilt to thrust forward, striking the man directly in the groin. He doubled over, clutching himself and gasping in agony before collapsing. Watching him fall, Luca sneered.

“Doesn’t seem to be as sturdy as he bragged.”

Only then did the remaining scammers, stunned by the unexpected events, finally put on angry faces.

“This bastard thinks he’s tough, huh?”

“I was letting it go since you’re a kid, but not anymore!”

Luca glanced around at them and readied the sword at his waist.

‘Five… no, are there six?’

He also noticed a man a bit farther, eyeing him and preparing magic.

At first he’d thought their group too weak for regular scammers, but if there was a mage, the situation changed.

Even a low-level mage held great sway over commoners.

‘All the better.’

Anyway, his body was stiff from the journey.

His injuries were gradually healing, and he had wanted to move a bit since he hadn’t trained every day lately.

Luca spoke calmly.

“Don’t get involved, Bella.”

“Yes, young master! Good luck!”

Bella carefully guided Ottbo’s shoulder as she stepped back. Nothing to bother with here.

Clutching his sword, Luca muttered,

“Bring it.”

“This cocky brat!”

At his provocation, a man from behind lunged with an outstretched hand.

As the man shouted and swung at him, Luca simply sidestepped, avoiding the hand, and at the same time lightly tapped the attacker’s ankle with the tip of his scabbard.

Thunk-thud!

“Argh!”

The man tumbled spectacularly across the ground.

“What the hell are you doing, idiot!”

“All at once—get him!”

The others started cursing at the fallen man, and then charged at Luca all together.

Luca, in turn, stepped on the knee of the nearest man, leapt backward, and swung the scabbard in the air.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

“Agh!”

Luca’s flash-like swing landed squarely atop the oncoming men’s heads.

Stunned, they crashed into each other and collapsed in a heap.

“Ugh…”

“Ow…”

“W-what the… is this…?”

Luca, who had taken down most of his attackers in an instant, landed in front of the groaning men and looked at the last standing thug.

The final man, unnerved, took a shaky step back.

“How unimpressive.”

Luca’s tone was flat and emotionless, as if he felt nothing from the encounter.

Not even short of breath, he terrified the remaining man, who swallowed nervously.

‘A-are we really getting wiped out by just one girl…?’

He hadn’t even used magic power—just a few light movements, and his comrades were down.

― Binding.

Woom!

“?”

Just then, a man wearing a robe, standing a bit away, pointed his staff at Luca.

From a magic circle of unknown origin, chains snaked out to bind Luca’s body.

“Now! Take him out!”

At the robed man’s shout, the sole standing thug snapped out of his daze.

“Hahaha! Let your guard down, didn’t you, you b*tch!”

With the clear thought that, no matter how skilled she was, magic was still unbeatable, he strode confidently up to Luca.

“How should I deal with you?”

He spun his arms as he glanced between Luca, the rich-looking kid behind him, and the pretty woman guarding the kid.

“Tsk. I figured you might be a low-level mage at least, but not even that, huh?”

Confirming the magic binding him, Luca clicked his tongue and gripped the scabbard and hilt.

Even while bound, with just a flick of his wrist, he drew the blade and lightly twisted to slice through the chains.

Clang!

“Ugh!”

With the magic forcibly destroyed, the robed caster moaned in pain and collapsed.

“Uh… huh?”

The man swinging his arms menacingly froze that instant.

‘He—he cut through magic?!’

To a regular person, magic was invincible. The idea of slicing it physically was unthinkable. Yet, he had just cleaved magic apart.

“Not even enough to count as post-meal exercise.”

Luca spoke indifferently as he slowly advanced on him, his sword glowing faintly blue. Even this clueless scammer knew what that meant.

‘M-magic power coating?!’

Magic power coating was a common skill taught in Hernan Academy’s swordsmanship department, but in a rural place like this, only territory knights—highly skilled ones at that—would be able to use it.

‘D-damn! I thought these merchant heirs came without proper guards…!’

He’d occasionally heard of such people—naive merchant heirs.

Not from huge companies, but famous enough locally, they’d act like they owned the place.

They’d come here—basically a lawless zone—without guards, get roughed up by guys like this, and lose their money.

That was the usual pattern… but this? This was unimaginable.

“Scum. You made me draw my sword, so you’ll pay the price.”

Face hardened, Luca pointed his sword. The man panicked, backing up and tripping over a fallen comrade.

“Ugh! S-stay away!”

Shaking in terror, the man cowered before Luca, who wordlessly raised her blade. Just then, a group forced their way through the onlookers.

“What’s all this commotion?”

“?”

Luca glanced over. About a dozen people, all marked by red bandages, were approaching, each wielding a club or axe.

“Whoa, it’s the Red Bandage gang, isn’t it?”

“What are those guys doing all the way here?”

He overheard a couple of people in the crowd whisper.

‘Red Bandage? Never heard of them.’

They looked like nothing but a bunch of hacks. At that moment, the scammer who had fallen shouted to them.

“B-bosses! That guy attacked us!”

“You scoundrel! What did you do to our boys?”

Seeing they weren’t important figures, Luca ignored their bickering and grabbed his scabbard, ready to swing it when—

“Stop! What on earth do you think you’re doing?!”

A louder voice cut through the chaos.

————-= Clacky’s Corner ————-=

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep